M is for Marauders
by SgtPepper592
Summary: Detention, pranks, exams, and quidditch came with school. Lies, betrayal, war, and murder came after. What spanned both was a seemingly infallible friendship between four boys. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs. Drabble story. Post DH.
1. A is for Azkaban

A/N: Drabble #1 of 26. Each has a different theme that corresponds to the next letter of the alphabet. I'm sure it's been done, but it really is fun :) These ones deal with the Marauders at any point in their lives, as well as Lily, and a little bit of Snape with the occasional cameo by the mysterious Mary Macdonald. As for Deathly Hallows spoilers, there aren't any in this one, but there will be in others (I think the first one is in 'E').

Story Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; everything that you recognise belongs to the wonderfully talented J.K. Rowling.

**A is for Azkaban**

Sirius Black stared at the opposite wall of his cell. Today, he had seen the date on a newspaper that an Auror had been carrying when he walked through the prison. He'd now spent more time in Azkaban than he had at Hogwarts. It was a milestone, but not one to be celebrated.

His only consolations were that Harry was safe, even if he wasn't loved, and that Peter Pettigrew had also spent the last eight years imprisoned.

However, as a dementor glided past his cell, Sirius didn't think that Peter's imprisonment as a rat was much of a consolation.


	2. B is for Betrayal

**B is for Betrayal**

On November 1st, 1981, Remus Lupin stayed in his flat. He shut the windows and locked the doors. He didn't want any visitors. In his eyes, there wasn't much to celebrate.

All Remus could feel was guilt. In some ways it was his fault that James and Lily were dead; that Harry Potter no longer had parents.

Sirius had betrayed Remus at sixteen by allowing Snape to know his secret; by almost causing Remus himself to become a murderer. He should have seen that it could happen again to someone else, and that this time, Sirius would be the murderer.


	3. C is for Chocolate

**C is for Chocolate**

If there was one thing that the first war had taught Remus, it was to always keep chocolate handy.

On this night, it was truer than ever as he hurried down the foggy London street to the stretch of road in front of houses eleven and thirteen. As he focused on the space where Number Twelve should have stood, he pulled a bar of chocolate out and stuffed a piece into his mouth.

His best friend had just died. He felt enough despair without the mist that reminded him that the dementors were breeding and Voldemort was on the loose.


	4. D is for Detention

**D is for Detention**

"Sirius Black," James whispered clearly into a mirror.

He was in his fifty-fourth and final detention of the year. Final because it was the last day of classes and as far as he knew, teachers didn't give detention during exams. His best friend, Sirius Black, was in his fifty-third.

James had lucked out, having been assigned to the lenient Professor Sprout. Sirius hadn't been so fortunate. He was doing detention with Filch, the caretaker, who had it out for each and every student.

When Sirius' head appeared, James whispered three words before stowing it in his bag.

"I win, Padfoot."


	5. E is for Equal

**A/N:** First non-Marauders one. I didn't mean to do that, but I came up with the word for 'E', and I really, really wanted to write to write it.

**E is for Equal**

_Mudblood._

The word reverberated in Lily Evans' head as she lay in bed. She was alone in the dormitory, which was a rarity since she shared it with four other girls. It was OWLs however, and everyone was studying together. Mary had briefly come into the room to tell her that Severus was waiting outside to talk to her. She had no wish to see him though; he couldn't fix this.

Years ago, he'd told her that it didn't matter; that being muggle-born didn't make her different; that they were equals.

His innocent reply had been lost in the years.


	6. F is for Four Poster

**A/N: **Continuity for this one is after Sirius sends Snape into the Whomping Willow after Remus.

**F is for Four-Poster**

At some time in Hogwarts' long history someone had decided to place four-poster beds in the Gryffindor dormitories. Whoever that was had been smart, mused James as he lay staring at the ceiling with his hangings drawn around him. They allowed for privacy in a shared dormitory.

It meant that maybe, just maybe, Remus wouldn't spend every day glaring at Sirius in stony silence after he found out what had happened.

It meant that they might get a little bit of peace.

It also meant comfort. It had been a long and gruelling night, and he couldn't wait to sleep.


	7. G is for Gryffindor

**A/N:** If any readers have any requests for future drabbles, you can review/PM/e-mail them. Anything after 'I' is open to suggestions. They would be very much appreciated as this was done as a challenge for myself, and it becomes even more challenging if I don't get to pick the word :)

**G is for Gryffindor**

The Sorting Ceremony was the first defining moment of one's Hogwarts career. There were many reasons for this, but James was focused on the fact that it dictated who he would be spending the next seven years with.

Actually, he was focused on one girl in particular; a girl with red hair and captivating green eyes.

When Professor McGonagall finally called her name and placed the hat on her head, it took barely a moment before the hat screamed, "GRYFFINDOR!" James smiled to himself. He was now certain that he would get to spend the next seven years with her.


	8. H is for Home

**H is for Home**

Twenty-two years after first setting eyes on the castle, Remus returned for the first time since leaving school. He was almost twice as old now. He wished that meant that he had had twice as many years to spend with his friends.

Remus wasn't going to think about that though; he wasn't going to remember the reasons why those friends had died.

Right now, sitting in one of the first carriages to leave Hogsmeade, with the students' chatter surrounding him and the castle growing larger in the distance, all he focused on was the feeling that he was coming home.


	9. I is for Invincible

**I is for Invincible**

"Bloody hell! That was my foot!"

"Stop whining, Sirius!"

"Shut up, all of you! You're going to get us caught!"

"We can't get caught, Remus, we're invisible, in case you've forgotten."

"That doesn't make you invincible, James! Any professor, or even worse, Ogg could hear our voices if they happened to be out for a night time stroll!"

"Oh. Right."

As they grew up, they learned time and again that invincibility didn't exist. But on that night they were eleven years old and under the invisibility cloak for the first time. It felt like all Hogwarts was at their feet.


	10. J is for Jinx

**A/N:** I want to say a huge, uber thank you to my reviewer. I was getting a little bit discouraged since I wasn't getting any feedback at all for this story, so you totally rock :)

**J is for Jinx**

James tilted his head sideways to look at the titles running down the spines of the books Peter had just dropped on the table. He pulled one out and opened it. Flipping through the pages he said, "I think we should start with this one. Basic defensive spells."

"C'mon, James," said Sirius, taking the book from him, "We'll learn these in class. We should start with jinxes." He took a book off the top of the pile.

"Let's just check these out. Then we can decide."

"Fine, Remus. But we're starting with jinxes. Anyone want to be the first guinea pig?"


	11. K is for Kindness

**A/N:** Thanks so much for all of the reviews :) It makes me feel way worse for what I have to say now. Updates for this story are going to get very, very sporadic. I moved back into my dorm today, and my classes start soon. I have to take seven classes this semester (to put this into perspective, five is considered a full course load, but a lot of students only take four), so I'm anticipating a lot of studying and a lot of late nights just to get through all of my work. I'm going to try to get a few more up this weekend, and hopefully a few more the weekend after. But what I'm trying to say is that even though I might not update for a long time, just know that I haven't given up on this story - I've just been buried under a pile of very heavy textbooks - and that I am going to finish it :)

**K is for Kindness**

In the dusty, decrepit Shrieking Shack, Remus walked to Sirius' side, offered his hand to help him off the floor, and embraced him.

To Sirius, those simple actions spoke volumes. They said that someone other than Peter Pettigrew finally knew the truth – and believed it. Those simple kindnesses meant that he wasn't alone anymore, after twelve years of solitude.

To Remus, it meant something entirely different. It was a role reversal of sorts. Many years ago, Sirius had shown him this same kindness by sticking by him after learning his secret. This time, Remus was just returning the favour.


	12. L is for Linger

**A/N:** Sorry for the long wait! I'd like to say that it won't happen again, but it probably will :(. Although, I must say that writing one of these after spending so much time on calculus and fluid mechanics and the like was a really nice change. So, I'm going to try to do it more often :).

**L is for Linger **

Linger for a moment. That was all they could do.

Sirius tightened his grip on Harry's shoulder when he heard him speak these words; when he realised that James and Lily had appeared once again in the world.

Only for a moment, though.

Maybe they lingered there for a moment and would never grace that place again. That was okay. Sirius didn't want them to. But they'd been wrong.

James and Lily were all over these grounds. They were everywhere in his life. On that night a year ago, he had seen James running along the tunnel.

They still lingered.


	13. M is for Map

**A/N:** I'm sick with a really bad cold. And that is why I wrote this instead of making some headway into my problem sets. I'll probably regret it in about five minutes, but for now, I hope you enjoy :). And as always, thanks for the reviews! More might make me feel a little bit better ;).

**M is for Map (Marauder's, of course)**

"What do you mean Filch has it?"

"I mean that he caught Moony and I coming back to the common room and took it! Right now, he's probably filing it under 'Highly Dangerous Objects'." James said dejectedly, flopping back onto his four-poster.

Sirius got up and started pacing. "You know the solution then, Prongs. We go in there and get it!"

"Sirius, be rational. We're two weeks away from finishing school. What do we need it for?"

"Because, Moony, one day there'll be a second generation of Marauders running around this school. How will they ever wreak havoc without it?"


	14. N is for Nunquam

**A/N: **I wrote this on the weekend, and it was about Peter, because I think he's been underrepresented in these. However, I really hated it, so I rewrote it, and now it's an almost L/J :).

**N is for Nunquam**

There were so many things that she had never done at Hogwarts.

She'd never broken a school rule; never snuck out after curfew. She always did her homework, turned essays in on time, and studied for every exam.

Upon entering this new world she had made rules for herself, and added to them as the years went by.

Never date James Potter; that was another one.

In second year, on the day that she discovered what the school motto meant, she had laughed and vowed never to take it seriously. Maybe there was one part that she'd taken too seriously.

* * *

Note: In case anyone doesn't know, the Hogwarts motto, "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus," means "Never tickle a sleeping dragon."


	15. O is for Obnoxious

**A/N:** Sorry for the long wait! The very, very long wait. And for something so very short, too.

After reading this one, I would be asking myself, "Shouldn't this be S is for Snap?" And the answer is yes, it probably should. But I've only slept like eight hours in the last three days, so I thought that this worked when in actuality, it might be really, really weird. As for the next update, it'll be the weekend before Christmas (after all of my classes are over :D). Sorry about the on hold status of this story, but I'm really hoping to finish it over the holidays :). Stick with me, because I promise that it will be finished.

**O is for Obnoxious(ly Loud)**

"Snap!" Sirius slapped his hand on the cards, drawing the last of the deck into his pile. "Play again?"

"Deal," said Remus. "But try to keep it down. There are people trying to study in here."

Sirius dealt until all the cards were gone. The game continued quietly until Sirius again yelled, "SNAP!"

"Sirius!" Remus whispered harshly, jerking his head to where the Head Boy had half risen out of his seat before going back to his books.

Sirius shrugged, and continued playing. It wasn't long until the deck exploded and all those studying turned around to glare at them.


	16. P is for Prank

**A/N:** I'm terribly out of practice at writing these. I don't think a drabble has ever given me this much trouble before. And difficulty writing + the distractions of being home + catching up on sleep + a finally complete set of Veronica Mars DVDs equals missed self-imposed deadline. Sorry!

The word for this one was suggested by SilverDrama. Hope you like it :).

**P is for Prank**

The summer after James turned fourteen was important for many reasons. Almost all of them were horribly sad.

In all of the chaos of the rapidly worsening war, the bright spot for James was that he was planning the best prank _ever_.

Lily Evans was his intended target, and it wasn't a prank in the usual sense of the word. For one, James was severely hoping that she would never, ever find out about it.

At least not until after she had fallen in love with him and no longer cared what he'd done to win her over, of course.


	17. Q is for Quidditch

**Q is for Quidditch**

It was a sweltering summer. The only thing keeping the gardens around the Potter house lush and beautiful was magic. James sometimes saw Muggles walking by the house muttering, no doubt about all the possible (illicit) ways the Potters used to keep their lawn so green.

The lawn was also green behind the house, where the too tall trees hid the boys flying on broomsticks. Sirius and James went out almost every day. James was captain and said he needed to practice, while Sirius wanted an escape.

Just because he'd run away didn't mean that he couldn't worry about them.


	18. R is for Refuge

**R is for Refuge**

He'd been travelling for days. Every part of his body was sore – not to mention the hand (or was it paw?) with the space where his finger should have been.

After a long trek through the country, Peter finally came to rest in the yard of a house that he knew by sight to be a wizard's dwelling. He was sure magic was the only thing that could hold up a house looking like that.

A young, very red-headed boy came out of the house. Peter made sure he was found. After all, he'd gotten good at playing the helpless.


	19. S is for Squid

**A/N:** Sorry the long wait with no warning! I've been at school for two weeks, but I thought I'd get one more done on the holidays. That said, I've moved from taking seven classes to a very manageable six this semester. I'm going to try to stick to a schedule of updating every weekend now :).

This one was somewhat inspired by _A Fish Out of Water_ by Helen Palmer, one of the first books I ever read.

**S is for Squid**

"How much did you feed it, Sirius?" Remus asked, surveying the fishbowl that now held more squid than water.

"Only as much as the package said. I can read, you know."

"Really, Sirius? I hadn't guessed."

"Oh, shut it, James." Sirius replied, chucking the jar of food at him. It landed next to Peter instead, who picked it up, studying the label.

"Uh, Sirius? This says that it's been charmed to make your fish grow larger and faster."

James laughed. "You might have bought a mini squid, mate, but I think you're going to end up with a giant one."


	20. T is for Time

**A/N: **I was going to try to post two to make up for missing last week's, but I realised that wasn't a very good plan because I have four tests this week. But there will almost for sure be another one next week.

**T is for Time**

On the day they last boarded the Hogwarts Express, the Marauders all agreed that they wanted more time.

When James was staring down the end of Voldemort's wand, the only thought in his head was that time had passed too quickly. For those three left behind, time nearly ceased to exist for many years after that.

When they finally got their time – a whole eternity of it – too much had happened. The lies, the betrayals, the losses, and the war had changed them. Love, parenthood, and new friendships had changed them. All they wanted now was what they were missing.


	21. U is for Unrelated

**A/N:** I suck. I'm sorry. My only excuses are a lack of time and inspiration. That said, I'm not making any more promises. Except that I will finish this story sometime during my summer break :).

**U is for (Un)related **

Lily Evans and Severus Snape were an unlikely pair. James was sure that he would never in his life understand how they could be friends. Lily stood for everything Severus Snape seemed to loathe. She should have known that it was dangerous to cavort with the likes of him in times like these.

The first time Snape saw James and Lily in the Great Hall talking like friends, he resolutely rose from his seat. Approaching Avery and Mulciber, he stated simply, "I'm in." James had won, and he was going to do whatever he wanted to. Lily Evans be damned.


	22. V is for Victory

**A/N:** This chapter is dedicated to sirius-seriously, who timely review made me want to write this again. However, I soon discovered that wanting to write this was only the first step in what became a rather long process. I'm really sorry for that.

**V is for Victory**

"Lily?"

Lily looked up from the parchment she was writing on. James took that as a sign to continue.

"Look, I know I've asked you this a hundred times before, and there's no reason for me to think that your answer will be any different this time, but will you go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?" James said in a rush.

Lily tried not to smile before replying, "Alright, then. Now, do you want to look over these patrol schedules for the prefects?" She was, however, unable to stop the faint blush that began to appear.

James just grinned.


	23. W is for Werewolf

**A/N:** I have no idea what word to use for 'X', so any suggestions are appreciated.

**W is for Werewolf**

"Where's Remus? Has it been a month already?" James asked as he walked into the dorm.

"He left this afternoon. I followed him to the entrance hall and saw him leave with Pomfrey." Sirius answered from his bed without looking up from _A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration_.

"That doesn't get us much further, Sirius. We already knew he was lying about flooing home."

"Hey, does anyone know when the next full moon is? I need to finish this chart before tonight's Astronomy." Peter asked.

"Tonight," answered Sirius. Looking up, he said, "Pete, can I see that chart for a minute?"


	24. X is for Xmas

**A/N:** I am so very sorry for taking so long with this. I really was planning on posting this for Christmas, but I just couldn't write anything. At all. And yes, this is pointless happiness! The next one will have substance, I promise.

**X is for Xmas**

"James!"

The boy in question yanked his pillow from under his head and pulled it down over his face.

"Oi, Padfoot! It's eight in the bloody morning. I don't care that it's Christmas, just get out of my room!"

Sirius paid him no mind, wandering in further and picking up a package on the desk.

"Blimey, you're grumpy this morning, Prongs. Ooh, what's this? A present from one Lily Evans?"

"Get. Out. Now. Go bother the house elves."

Sirius sighed dramatically, but made for the door, yelling, "Happy Christmas!" as loudly as possible before leaving. James grumbled and rolled over.


End file.
